Let us blessThe imagination of the Earth,That knew early the patienceTo harness the mind of time,Waited for the seas to warm,Ready to welcome the emergenceOf things dreaming of voyagingAmong the stillness of land.

And how light knew to nurseThe growth until the face of the EarthBrightened beneath a vision of color.

When the ages of ice cameAnd sealed the Earth insideAn endless coma of cold,The heart of the Earth held hope,Storing fragments of memory,Ready for the return of the sun.

The wonder of a gardenTrusting the first warmth of springUntil its black infinity of cellsBecomes charged with dream;Then the silent, slow nurtureOf the seed's self, coaxing itTo trust the act of death.

The humility of the EarthThat transfigures allThat has fallenOf outlived growth.

The kindness of the Earth,Opening to receiveOur worn formsInto the final stillness.

Let us ask forgiveness of the EarthFor all our sins against her:For our violence and poisoningsOf her beauty.

Let us remember within usThe ancient clay,Holding the memory of seasons,The passion of the wind,The fluency of water,The warmth of fire,The quiver-touch of the sunAnd shadowed sureness of the moon.

That we may awaken,To live to the fullThe dream of the EarthWho chose us to emergeAnd incarnate its hidden nightIn mind, spirit, and light.

There was a time when I lived on Maui, without much money but surrounded by stunning natural beauty. I stayed in a place half-way up Haleakala Volcano, at the edge of a eucalyptus forest. I fasted a lot in those days, and several times a week I would walk barefoot into the woods. Hidden among the trees was a small rock cave, just large enough for me to sit upright in meditation. To sit quietly in the cool, silent embrace of the Earth -- a true blessing!

Though I now live in a small city, in a computer-powered world, I still carry that time with me in my heart. That memory continuously reminds me that, in spite of skyscrapers and the Internet, the world is not man-made. All the works of humanity are small accomplishments compared with the panoramic living miracle of the Earth.

The ground below us, sky above us, breath within us -- all is the living Earth.

Not only could we not act without the Earth, we could not dream. The images, the objects, the colors that populate the human psyche, they are all of the Earth too. The Earth speaks to us, and gives us a vocabulary to speak back.

The Earth is the place of birth, the stuff of life, and rest in death.

The kindness of the Earth,Opening to receiveOur worn formsInto the final stillness.

The Earth is our everything.

While we as individuals live out the span of years alotted to us, the Earth is the full embodiment, the whole multiplicity of Life.

The tangible hints at the intangible. Matter expresses spirit. Earth gives form to heaven. How can we not honor that form? It is sacred. And it is us. You and I emerge to incarnate that form. Our challenge is to awaken and incarnate the secret light it suggests.

That we may awaken,To live to the fullThe dream of the EarthWho chose us to emergeAnd incarnate its hidden nightIn mind, spirit, and light.

Take some time today to sit on the Earth. Run your fingers through the grass. Feel the quiet strength filling your bones. Know you are home.